‘”We got off on the wrong foot. We were forcing it down in the neutral zone, but they were always looking to get creative,” Miller said. “We didn’t pick the right time to take the lead. On the third goal, I should have played it better.”‘

‘”Everyone always wants to blame the coach for everything when things go wrong,” Buffalo’s Jason Pominville said. “But you know what? It usually isn’t the coach’s fault, and there’s something to be said for having this kind of stability.”‘

‘"Our fans and the atmosphere were amazing, the best all season," said forward Patrick Kaleta, whose early fight fed the frenzy. "It’s amazing how much energy the fans can bring to you and how much passion they bring. I know what we’ve gone through here this last little while. Being a fan once, we owe these guys, and they’ve stayed behind us."’

‘”The start of the season I was trying to do too much, expecting myself to be perfect every night and making big saves every night,” Miller explained. “That can’t happen unless you’re relaxed and in better position. You can’t do that by getting way ahead of yourself and overcommitting. You have to be within the play, be within the game. Maybe these little tweaks can slow me down just enough where I can make my reads and still make all the right plays.”‘

‘In his return to the lineup, Ryan Miller also returned to his Vezina Trophy-winning form by making 35 saves – 30 of which came over the final two periods – to lead Buffalo to a 3-1 victory over the Northeast Division rival Maple Leafs.’